18 Delicious Moroccan Desserts

Morocco has always been known for its delicious sweets. From baklava to kadaif, these treats are some of the country’s most famous dishes.

If you want to try them at home, then you should definitely check out our list of the 18 best Moroccan desserts.

Morocco is located in North Africa, bordering Spain and Algeria. The capital city is Rabat, and it covers an area of 2,150 square miles (5,600 km2).

Morocco is also known for its rich history and culture, and it attracts tourists from around the globe.

1. Moroccan Orange Flavored Cake

This moist and delicious cake is perfect for special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays.

We’ve updated this original recipe to include some of our favorite ingredients, including orange zest, cardamom, pistachios, and rose water. 

This version includes no eggs, making it suitable for vegans and those with allergies.

The basic recipe calls for three cups of flour, one cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 4 tablespoons butter, and 1/2 cup milk.

To add flavor, we recommend adding orange zest, cardamon pods, chopped pistachios, and a few drops of rose water. 

2. Coconut Yogurt Cake

Basbousa, otherwise known as coconut yogurt semolina cake, is one of our favorite desserts. This recipe uses almond flour, which makes it gluten-free, and you don’t even need butter to make it! 

This cake is made with coconut milk and semolina, which gives it a very soft texture, unlike regular cakes. If you want to add another layer of flavor, sprinkle some cinnamon over the cake just before serving.

3. Moroccan Lemon Cake

This recipe for Moroccan Lemon Cake is adapted from one found online. It’s light, fluffy, and moist — just like the best cakes you’ve ever eaten.

And it’s easy enough to make that even beginners can enjoy it. You’ll find the ingredients are simple, and there aren’t many steps involved. Just mix everything together and bake!

The cake batter is mixed up in a stand mixer or food processor. Once it’s ready, pour it into a greased 9×13 baking dish. Bake the cake for about 40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

When done, let it cool completely before frosting it with the lemon glaze.

4. Date-Filled Cookies

Maamoul cookies are extremely popular throughout the Middle East and North Africa. These delicious treats are usually baked around the month of Ramadan, which lasts 28 days.

During this period, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. However, there are exceptions to this rule.

For example, some people might eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks throughout the day. This is called “Eid Mubarak.”

The cookies are typically filled with dates and spices. Some recipes call for almonds, pistachios, walnuts, or hazelnuts. Others use raisins, figs, dried apricots, or apples.

You can either roll out the dough into small balls or cut it into squares. Either way works fine. Then fill each ball or square with chopped dates and spices. Bake again for 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool completely before eating.

5. Almond Snake Pastry

M’hancha is an iconic Moroccan pastry that looks like a snake. Made from ground almonds, egg yolks, flour, and sugar, it takes hours to make and needs to rest overnight.

This sweet snack is usually served as a dessert, but you can eat it for breakfast too.

6. Almond Crescent Cookies

Ghriba is a soft, sweet crescent-shaped cookie. This recipe uses ground almonds, sugar, egg whites, butter, vanilla extract, baking powder, and cinnamon.

You’ll find Ghriba cookies being sold in supermarkets around the world. They come in different flavors such as chocolate, pistachio, orange, and many others.

The cinnamon topping gives these cookies a delicious taste. Cinnamon and nuts go really well together. In addition, the cinnamon adds sweetness to the cookies.

If you want to make these cookies extra special, add some chopped walnuts. Walnut pieces give the cookies a crunchy texture.

7. Homemade Baklava

Filled with delicate layers of pastry dough and a sweet walnut filling, this delicious dessert makes a great gift for special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, graduations, and holidays.

The recipe calls for a large amount of butter, flour, sugar, eggs, milk, and nuts, which are mixed together to make the dough.

Once the dough is formed into balls, the layered pieces of dough are rolled out thin enough to allow you to cut shapes out of each piece. 

8. Almond Briouat

Almonds aren’t just for snacking anymore! These little almond cakes are perfect for dessert or even breakfast — they’re baked with a sweet batter that’s filled with crunchy bits of almonds and covered in a light dusting of powdered sugar.

They’re also very easy to make, and you’ll find yourself making them again and again.

9. Qatayef Asafiri With Ashta

Qatayef Asafiri is a traditional Palestinian dessert that is filled with nuts, dried fruits, and spices. This recipe features the nut filling known as ashta.

Ashta is typically used in savory dishes such as salads or stews, but it can also be added to desserts like qatayef asafiri. You can use almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, pecans, walnuts, macadamia nuts, or even cashews.

10. Moroccan Mint Tea

Moroccan mint tea is one of our favorite drinks. We love it hot or cold, sweetened or unsweetened, plain or blended with fruit juice. You name it, we’ve tried it.

But what makes Moroccan mint tea so special is that it’s both warm and cool at the same time.

The mint leaves give the tea a cooling sensation, while the green tea warms things up. This unique mix of flavors is perfect for those days when you’re feeling under the weather. 

And because it’s so simple to make, you can always have some Moroccan mint tea around whenever you want.

11. Moroccan Chebakia

Chebakia is one of Morocco’s most popular sweets. They look like little flowers – hence the name – and are usually served during weddings and celebrations.

These delicate Moroccan treats are made with flour, sugar, eggs, butter, milk, almonds, rose water, vanilla extract, and orange blossom water.

The dough is shaped into a ball, flattened out, and rolled around a stick or dowel. Then, the dough is cut into thin strips and folded over several times.

Finally, the strips are stacked together and pressed down to form a flower shape. 

12. Moroccan Beghrir

Beghrir is a traditional breakfast dish in Morocco. Traditionally, it’s made with wheat flour, eggs, sugar, milk, butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and honey.

But we’ve taken things one step further by adding semolina and baking powder.

Semolina gives the beghrir a slightly spongy texture, while baking powder makes it light and airy. We added some extra spices like cardamom and saffron, but why not?

13. Moroccan Sellou

If you want to make some delicious desserts for Christmas, you don’t have to bake them yourself. You could just ask someone else to do it for you.

This recipe takes about 10 minutes to prepare but requires a little extra effort.

14. Cinnamon Oranges

Here’s a simple dessert that requires no cooking and only has 2 ingredients: oranges and cinnamon. This recipe uses oranges that you already have in your kitchen. They’re perfect for making this quick and healthy treat.

You’ll find instructions here.

15. Moroccan Fritters Or Doughnuts

These are fried balls of dough covered in honey syrup. They originated in Morocco, where they are known as kloubia. In France, they are called pommes de terre à la marocaine.

They are typically served warm with tea, coffee, milk, or ice cream.

These deep-fried balls of batter are sometimes filled with dates, nuts, honey, or cheese. Sometimes people even dip them in chocolate sauce.

You’ll find them sold everywhere, especially in Morocco.

16. Ghoriba – Moroccan Shortbread

Ghoriba is a Middle Eastern cookie that is perfect for dessert. Made from almond meals, melted butter, sugar, and ground almonds, you’ll find them in bakeries throughout the region.

There are many variations in the recipe, but most include nuts, honey, and spices like cinnamon and cardamom. Some versions call for rose water, while others use orange blossom water, which adds another layer of flavor.

17. Moroccan Fruit Salad

Morocco’s version of classic fruit salads calls for fresh bananas, strawberries, and apples. But unlike the American versions, the one served up here is coated in sweet and tangy yogurt. A little goes a long way.

The best part about this dish is how easy it is to make. Just buy the ingredients, chop them up, and put them into a bowl. Then cover everything with yogurt and let it sit overnight. In the morning, serve chilled.

18. Halwa dyal Makina

Halwa dyal makina is one of those special cookies you find in Morocco. They are shaped like little churros, but with different tastes.

These biscuits are called piped because they look like small tubes. You take a piece of halwa dyal makini and dip it into melted chocolate. The biscuit tastes delicious and makes for a great snack.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is It That’s So Unique About Moroccan Desserts?

Moroccan food is known for being spicy, flavorful, and full of rich textures. This includes sweets. Moroccan desserts are often very simple but packed with flavor. 

They use many different fruits such as citrus, figs, pomegranate, melon, and apricots. These fruits give the desserts a unique taste and texture.

The most popular type of dessert in Morocco is similar to ice cream but without dairy. Instead, it contains nuts, honey, sugar, and sometimes cinnamon.

Other types include mamool, which is usually served during Ramadan, and halwa. Halwa is a thick pudding made out of semolina, milk, and butter. It is often flavored with saffron.

Final Thoughts

Morocco has so much to offer travelers looking for an authentic experience. From beautiful beaches to historic cities, there’s something for everyone. It’s also a country where you can enjoy traditional food and culture.